This Love Will Be Your Downfall
by therewasnothief
Summary: Set after 6x09. Prompt by [pmelloc] on tumblr! Jane loses himself in a drunken stupor and finds himself at Lisbon's door. Just a quick one-shot, nothing special. Thinking of writing an alternate ending though. Please review!


**A/N:** This is set after 6x09, a day before Jane and Lisbon begin working for the FBI. Thank you to pmelloc on tumblr for giving me this prompt! I took some creative liberty with it. ;)

Enjoy!

* * *

Jane's mind swirled as he placed the bottle against his lips. The liquid seared down his throat but he swallowed it anyway, too tired to care anymore.

_Lisbon won't be happy,_ he mused. The thought of her made him drunken with happiness.

Or was it the alcohol?

With another drink Jane began to lose his grip on reality, humming and swaying until Lisbon's eyes invaded his thoughts again.

_Gotta find her._

* * *

Brushing her teeth, Lisbon reflected on her day with gratitude. Jane was back and in good shape. _The beard has to go, though,_ she said to herself, feeling the amusement spread across her face.

The thought made her weary with bittersweet memories. It had been a long two years. Lisbon wasn't one to sit around and wait for things to happen; Jane had once called her a 'go-getter' during one of their late night conversations. She knew what she wanted and she knew how to get it, for the most part.

But Jane was different. He was complicated and simple all at once. What was she meant to do with him?

A loud knock on her door interrupted Lisbon's train of thought. She furrowed her brows and turned the doorknob slowly, taking a good guess at who would be standing outside.

"Teresa," Jane slurred, earning him an eye roll in return.

"Jane."

He paused, leaning on her door frame and raising his eyebrow. "Hey partner," he said mischievously. "I see you're alone tonight. So am I."

Lisbon narrowed her eyes. "Have you been drinking? We're about to start working for the FBI. If you keep this up, they'll put you in jail."

Seeing the annoyance in her features only made Jane more flirtatious. "Come on, just admit it. You're glad I'm back."

"Get inside before someone sees you doing something stupid. And stop-"

"Shhhh," Jane replied, pressing his index finger to her lips. She swatted his hand away and closed the door.

Gesturing to her couch, Lisbon sighed. "You can sleep here tonight. No funny stuff."

"But I like funny stuff," Jane pouted, looking around her lounge room. "Nice place," he said exaggeratedly.

Lisbon felt her temples throb with frustration.

"Jane, you have been offered the deal of a lifetime. No charges for a homicide and obstruction of justice. Aren't you even a little bit thankful?"

Now it was Jane's turn to roll his eyes. "They could have left me alone. I was doing fine. Where's my drink?"

Lisbon gripped his arm as he swayed. "Sit down, Jane."

"Did you take it from me?"

"No, you didn't bring it with you."

After a long pause Jane looked at her, eyes bloodshot. "Ohhhhhhh. Well, yeah, like I said, I was fine."

"How much did you have to drink?" Lisbon asked, hiding her concern. Jane stretched out his legs on the couch and put his arms behind his head.

"Not much," he murmured. "Just a little bit."

Retrieving a blanket, Lisbon tried not to laugh. "It's me you're talking to. I know how much it takes to make you drunk."

"Fine, a lot," he said louder, sitting up suddenly. "I wanted to see you. Doesn't that matter more? Stop asking me stuff."

Crossing her arms, Lisbon stood up. "Good night, Jane. See you in the morning."

He looked at her petulantly. "Teresa... come back..."

Slowly she turned around. "Hm?"

Extending his arms, Jane peered up at her with the innocence of a puppy dog. "I need a hug."

"Why?" she replied exasperatedly, unsure of what his intentions were.

"Please, Belladonna?"

This time Lisbon didn't even try to stifle her laugh. "You're gonna pay for this tomorrow."

Bending down, she wrapped her arms around him. Her eyes softened. "I'm glad you came to see me and..."

"Not someone else?" he whispered back.

Drawing away from him, Lisbon looked down. Jane tilted her chin up.

For a long moment he considered pressing his lips against her mouth and feeling her relent to him. But it wouldn't be right. Even in his drunken state Jane couldn't bring himself to do that to her.

Instead he told her another truth. "I came back for you," he started. "I needed something to deal with that."

Lisbon smiled fondly at him. "I read all of your letters. They kept me going when I felt like I couldn't take it anymore."

Embracing again, the pair reveled in their shared warmth and comfort. Jane squeezed Lisbon a little harder and she squeezed back, closing her eyes. A thousand words went unsaid and yet, it seemed like they had been talking for hours.

"Alright," Lisbon whispered, tearing herself away from him a second time. "I really think you should rest."

"But Belladonna..."

"Go to sleep, please."

"Teresa," he said, huskiness seeping into his tone by accident. "I do what I want."

He winked and Lisbon paused for a brief moment. "Sleep, Jane. You'll thank me in the morning, I promise."

Upset by her ceaseless good will, Jane rolled over and faced the inside of the couch. "Fine. Whatever you say, Saint Teresa," he said sarcastically, waving his hand dramatically.

With a smirk, Lisbon settled the blanket over his shoulders. "That's better." She turned off the side lamp and watched as Jane drifted into a deep sleep.

But not before she kissed him on the forehead, smoothing a stray curl down.

It was only when she reached her bedroom and closed the door that Jane gave himself permission to smile.


End file.
